Mattawan High School gym unusable for at least two more months because of storm damage

Workers check out damage to Mattawan High School after a Nov. 17 windstorm.

MATTAWAN, MI -- Mattawan High School gymnasium is likely to be unusable until at least mid-February, as workers scramble to repair damage caused by a Nov. 17 windstorm, school officials say.

The storm blew off part of the gym roof, causing water damage to the gym floor. Nobody was in the building during the storm, which occurred on a late Sunday afternoon.

Patrick Bird, superintendent of Mattawan Consolidated School, said the initial plan was to replace the part of the gym floor that was directly damaged. But over the Thanksgiving holiday, other parts of the floor started to buckle, which led the district's insurance company to authorize installation of a complete new floor.

"We feared it was potentially a safety issue," Bird said.

It's expect to be eight to 10 weeks before the new floor is ready, Bird said.

An indoor track that ran along a balcony over the gym also needs to be replaced, he said.

The gym roof has a temporary seal for now, Bird said, and will be replaced in the spring.

"If all goes well, we may get the gym back for the end of our winter sports season," Bird said. "The best-case scenario is mid- to late February."

Until then, Bird said, the boys' and girls' varsity basketball teams will play their home games at Kalamazoo Valley Community College and the junior varsity and freshmen teams will use the gym at Mattawan Later Elementary School.

He said district officials are still figuring out alternate locations for the wrestling and cheerleading teams.

"One nice thing is I think about every area school reached out to us and asked, 'What can we to help?' " Bird said.

Another silver lining: The district will get a new gym roof, gym floor and indoor track for the cost of their $5,000 insurance deductible. The gym was built in 1990, and the roof and floor are original.

Bird said the district is soliciting for ideas for the logo or design that will be painted in the middle of the new gym floor. Ideas can be submitted to Bird or the high school athletic director's office.

Bird said that rather than wringing their hands over the inconvenience, school officials are counting their blessings.

"Nobody was hurt," Bird said. "It could have been much worse."

Julie Mack covers K-12 education and writes a column for Kalamazoo Gazette. Email her at jmack1@mlive.com, call her at 269-350-0277 or
follow her on Twitter at kzjuliemack.